Cooperative+Learning

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In today's classrooms, our roles as educators are ever-changing due to technology and the diversity of our students; therefore, we need to adapt our instructional strategies to the needs of all students. Cooperative learning is a teaching strategy which is utilized in a constructivist approach to teaching combining the efforts of a small group of students and their teacher.Students collaboratively work together in a group of two or more students to complete a task. According to Slavin(2000), students in the groups are responsible for their own learning and for helping the memebers of the group learn. Activities that the students are involved in allow the students to become engaged in learning the material. Hands-on learning is what students experience when cooperative learning takes place in their classroom. Cooperavtive learning is used to promote cohesion between group members and to provide an atmosphere where learning is taking place.Peer-assisted learning is another name for cooperative learning in which students work in small groups helping each other to learn(Rohrbeck, Ginsburg-Block,Fantuzzo, & Miller, 2003).

There are many methods of cooperative learning that have been developed and researched, some dating back as early as the 1900's. The research began to peak in the early 1970's(Slavin, Hurley,Chamberlain, 2003). Cooperative learning can be categorized into two categories: group study methods, and project-based learning or active learning(Stern, 1996). Students primarily work together helping one another learn specific skills or information. Instead of the traditional lecture and textbook style of teaching, several teachers are now beginning to use cooperative learning in their classroom to maximize their students' learning experiences. Leaders in the field of cooperative learning, Roger Johnson and David Johnson, came up with five elements of cooperative learning(Johnson & Johnson,1999)which are:
 * face-to-face promotive interaction(helping group members on effort/success)
 * positive interdependence(a sense of sink or swim together)
 * accountability(each individual and each member of the group)
 * interpersonal skills(trust,decision making, and communication)
 * group processing(how well did the group work together?(Johnson & Johnson, 1999)

The components of cooperative learning are: 1)teacher/student and group interaction, 2) tasks, 3)roles and responsibilities of each individual and group member,4)teacher's role is to promote individual thinking, 5)group members encouraging group participation(Borich, 2007), (Marzano, Pickering,& Pollack, 2001). The teacher should assign roles to the group members to promote cohesiveness within the group. Assigning roles for the members of the group will promote communication and shared responsibilities (Borich, 2007). Working cooperatively in the group should consist of 60-80% of the time, then there should be class discussion (Borich, 2007).Some examples of cooperative learning are: role playing, games, debates, jigsaw, and think-pair-share (Borich, 2007). Advantages of using cooperative learning in the classroom are improved critical thinking skills, alternative options, social skills, increased student retention, and cohesiveness between the group and the teacher(Webb, 2006). Cooperative learning, when modeled and not used every day, can provide an atmosphere that promotes learning and leads to meaningful conversations between all the members of the group. Students learn to form attitudes and values as well as alternative viewpoints of a topic which promotes problem solving skills, social skills, and critical thinking skills. When students are able to discuss and bounce ideas off of one another the results are improved collaborative skills, increased self-esteem, and an improvement in achievement. When cooperative learning is used in a classroom with bilingual students the transition to English-only instruction in the upper elementary grades is a smoother transition(August& Shanahan,2006,Hertz-Lazarowitz & Slavin, 1998).

Learning is an ongoing activity that each of us experiences in our lives. Each person is a special individual and hence, the way in which each one learns is also individualistic. How well we learn and how we apply whatever is learned is all a part of our genetic framework. To improve instruction, the instructors must realize that each student learns differently. To improve learning, you have to devote more time to each individual student. Sometimes, this is not possible due to lack of resources. This is where cooperative learning comes into the picture. Cooperative leaning, very simply stated, is about putting students into structured groups to achieve certain goals. Students are able to help each other to learn and achieve those goals by pulling together their talents and skills.

Cooperative learning is extremely beneficial. The benefits are on two levels. There are benefits accessible to the learner and to the teacher. Cooperative learning encourages students to perform better than in individualistic competitive environments. Cooperative learning more often than not results in better reasoning, idea generation and better application skills.
 * Benefits of Cooperative Learning**
 * Improved performance – Cooperative learning helps the learner in achieve better results..
 * Favorable for minority – Cooperative learning helps minority students achieve their academic goals more effectively.
 * Positive effect – There is a positive effect on self-esteem, social skills, attitude and confidence of students who work in a cooperative atmosphere..
 * Better understanding – As the students are helping each other learn the material; they have a better understanding of it themselves.
 * Improves peer skills – As students are working together in a cooperative environment, their people skills improve along with other social skills and they do not feel peer pressure. (http//:edusearcheric.org)

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Cooperative learning is actually a generic term that refers to numerous methods for grouping students. At least 10 different methods have been formally described in the research literature.Effective cooperative learning occurs when students work together to accomplish shared goals and when positive structures are in place to support that process (Johnson & Johnson, 1999).Even though appropriate use of student groups for learning has been shown to yield significant learning improvement across disciplines, the successful application of cooperative grouping in classrooms still eludes many educators (Johnson & Johnson, 1999). Criteria for effective cooperative learning groups include:
 * Students understand that their membership in a learning group means that they either succeed or fail—together. (Deutsch, 1962).
 * "Positive interdependence" includes mutual goals, joint rewards, resource interdependence (each group member has different resources that must be combined to complete the assignment), and role interdependence (each group member is assigned a specific role).
 * Students help each other learn and encourage individual team members' success.
 * Individuals in the group understand that they are accountable to each other and to the group as a distinct unit.
 * Interpersonal and small-group skills are in place, including communication, decision making, conflict resolution, and time management.
 * Members are aware of the group's processes. Individual members talk about "the group" as a unique entity.

Research Findings

 * Organizing students in heterogeneous cooperative learning groups at least once a week has a significant effect on learning (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001).
 * Low-ability students perform worse when grouped in homogeneous ability groups (Kulik & Kulik, 1991, 1997; Lou et al, 1996).
 * There may be no other instructional strategy that simultaneously achieves such diverse outcomes as cooperative grouping. The amount, generalizability, breadth, and applicability of the research on cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts provides considerable validation of the use of cooperative learning to achieve diverse outcomes, including achievement, time on task, motivation, transfer of learning, and other benefits (Cohen, 1994a; Johnson, 1970; Johnson & Johnson, 1974, 1978, 1989, 1999a, 2000; Kohn, 1992; Sharan, 1980; Slavin, 1977, 1991).
 * Cooperative learning can be ineffective when support structures are not in place (Reder & Simon, 1997).

Implementation
Grouping students to work collaboratively and cooperatively offers benefits for learners. Teachers who are successful at facilitating cooperative learning employ research-based strategies, such as:
 * 1) Create the right type of group for the need. Sometimes an occasional informal group is needed, such as pair and share. Base groups are formed for long-term social and interpersonal support. Formal learning groups are used when a commitment of time and effort is required.
 * 2) Keep group size small. Ideally, learning groups include no more than four students. Base groups may be larger, up to six students.
 * 3) Use ability grouping sparingly. Students across the spectrum of abilities benefit by heterogeneous grouping, especially low-ability students.
 * 4) Don't use cooperative learning for all instructional goals. While cooperative learning is a powerful strategy, it can be overused, or misapplied. Students need time to investigate ideas and pursue interests on their own.
 * 5) Use a variety of strategies when choosing students for groups. Many selection strategies (common clothing, favorite colors, letters in names, birthdays) will work when attempting to randomly group students.
 * 6) Facilitate success. Develop organizational tools, forms, learning journals, and other structuring documents that foster the smooth processes needed for effective cooperation and group work.
 * 7) Support new groups. Cooperative learning is a practiced skill that requires monitoring and adjustment. Teach specific skills before grouping students, define criteria for success, and develop rubrics for key expectations. Meet with new group members to support their success.

© 2005 - Focus on Effectiveness is a product of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. These materials are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. Developed by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, Portland, Oregon. Examples of cooperative learning are: games, simulations, Webquests, blogs, collaborative online projects such as a wiki.

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 * Podcast **

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